- Full name Kory DeHaan
- Born 07/16/1976 in Pella, IA
- Profile Ht.: 6'2" / Wt.: 187 / Bats: L / Throws: R
- Debut 04/25/2000
Top Rankings
Organization Prospect Rankings
-
It's much more difficult to keep a position player than a pitcher as a major league Rule 5 draft pick. While pitchers can get semiregular work in a mopup role, hitters often are limited to pinch-hitting and pinch-running duty. And even if a position player sticks the entire year, he essentially has wasted a year of development. That's the situation that faced DeHaan after he got just 158 at-bats in 2000. He wasn't ready for Triple-A at the start of last season, but he rebounded in Double-A and made the all-prospect team in the Arizona Fall League, which he led with 13 doubles and 39 RBIs. He hit a mammoth homer over the batting eye at Peoria in one AFL game. DeHaan has made significant adjustments and improved his plate discipline. The Padres believe he has some pull power, and his speed allows him to steal bases and cover plenty of ground in center field. His arm is average. DeHaan will start 2002 in Triple-A to get some more badly needed at-bats. If he continues to blossom like he did in the latter part of 2001, he'll rocket up this list and to San Diego. -
After making him a major league Rule 5 draft pick at the 1999 Winter Meetings, the Padres stashed DeHaan on the disabled list for the first three weeks of April and then kept him on their bench for the rest of the season. While that allowed San Diego to keep him, getting a total of 158 at-bats all year didn't do much for DeHaan's development. His best tool is his speed, which makes him a stolen base threat and gives him fine range in center field. He also has an average arm and gap power. How much he'll hit depends on whether he can improve his plate discipline and make more contact. DeHaan needs to play every day in Triple-A this year, after which he'll be the club's next option in center field if Mike Darr doesn't turn out to be an acceptable replacement for Ruben Rivera. -